Residents and visitors are becoming increasingly frustrated at the unavailability of parking spots near Goulburn Base Hospital while work is being carried out on its redevelopment.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Many have experienced difficulty finding parking during the recent demolition of the Lady Grose and Springfield House buildings.
And there are fears this will ramp up even further during the construction phase unless something is done about it.
The council has similar concerns, and some councillors openly expressed these thoughts at last week's Goulburn Mulwaree Council ordinary meeting.
The problem, as pointed out by councillor Margaret O'Neill, is that contractors doing the works have been parking in spaces that should be reserved for patients and people visiting sick relatives.
"Good luck trying to get a park near the Goulburn Base Hospital at the moment," Cr O'Neill said.
She also wondered why a scheduled public meeting on the issue had been taken off the table.
"At the council meeting in January, we said we were going to have a public meeting on the hospital parking," she said.
The council's operations director, Matt O'Rourke, said consultation would commence next week in a series of drop-in sessions for the community.
"People can come in and get information on the project," he said.
"People will get an opportunity to peruse plans in a consultation period that runs for five weeks. It is set up to get people to come and have their say. Then the plan will be finalised."
But the length of the consultation period has some worried because the parking issue is happening right now.
"Does that help the community in that area?" Cr O'Neill asked.
"There is never a car park and the construction people are parking near the hospital right now, taking up the parking spaces," she said.
Cr O'Neill continued.
"I still think there should be a public meeting on it and this was a recommendation of the council," she said.
Mayor Bob Kirk said proposed changes in parking limits were in connection to the construction phase and not the recent demolition.
"But they are parking in the streets now," Cr O'Neill said.
After questions from the Goulburn Post, the Southern NSW Local Health District advised that time-restricted parking is proposed on specific streets near the hospital, as part on a community consultation.
A separate car parking space for contractors is also proposed for the corner of Deccan and Mount Streets.
"As construction of the Goulburn Hospital and Health Service Redevelopment starts to ramp up, it has been proposed by the council to make a few changes to on-street parking to ensure the safety of hospital patients, visitors, staff and nearby residents, as well as minimise disruptions," a statement from the LHD said.
The spokesperson said the separate car parking area for contractors would be opened as soon as possible.
"The proposed construction of a car park on the Department of Education site is not specifically linked to the current consultation being undertaken by the council," they said.
Proposed parking:
- 2-hour parking limit in Goldsmith, Faithfull and Albert and Prell Streets (light blue on map)
- 4-hour parking in Faithfull, Goldsmith and Albert Streets (green)
- resident permit parking only on Show St (orange)
- A specified contractor only car park (yellow).
Two community drop-in sessions are being held where residents can get more information on the proposed parking changes.
The first session is on at the Civic Centre on Monday, February 18 from 4pm 6pm.
The second session will be at Goulburn Hospital Community Health on Thursday, March 7 from 4pm 6pm.
David Cole
Journalist at the Goulburn Post
Journalist at the Goulburn Post
